Author: Surya Pratap Deka

BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR
INTERNATIONAL & COMPARATIVE EDUCATION

Surya Pratap Deka

Surya is a doctoral student in the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge. His current engagement with educational research builds on his experience as a teacher, teacher educator, and non-profit leader in India. Through Flourishing Minds Foundation, an organisation he founded in 2011, he runs a free, learning centre in rural Maharashtra for children and families from marginalised communities. Along with this grassroots work, he has engaged extensively with the larger educational ecosystem 鈥� schools, government bodies, multinational agencies, and NGOs 鈥� to enrich the research-practice interaction. Currently, his research work is focused on mental health and education in the Global South. He is from Assam, India.

Rethinking Doctoral Success in UK Higher Education: Insights from Global South Student Experiences

A richly detailed hand-drawn illustration summarising the PhD@CAM research project, titled "PhD@CAM: What it Takes, Breaks & Makes". The image is organised around a central oval depicting a world map, surrounded by thematic sections. To the left, "Enablers" include a caring college community, scholarship, supportive supervisors, cutting-edge facilities, and professional networks. Also on the left, "Notions of Success" are described as relational, evolving constructs involving growing knowledge and a maturing disposition. The central section depicts experiences of Global Southern identities, including logistical barriers, visa challenges, cultural differences, discrimination, and contrasting positive experiences of safety, solidarity, and agentic meaning-making. To the right, "Challenges" include lack of representation, institutional rigidity, financial strain, imposter syndrome, isolation, and grief. "Recommendations for the university" include supportive spaces, mental health support, and unconscious bias training. "Recommendations for students" include building friend networks, understanding academic norms, and prioritising self-care. Flags representing various Global South countries appear at the bottom centre. Illustrated by Seekan Hui

What does it mean to succeed in a PhD? 鈥淪tudent success鈥� in UK higher education remains a surprisingly vague concept, encompassing a range of priorities from retention and completion to employability and satisfaction. Over the past two decades, as UK鈥�

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Seeking the 鈥楯ust鈥� in Liminal Spaces: Rebordering Conception, Definition, and Praxis of Education in the Global South

Group photo of blog post authors at the Conference

For us鈥攕ix researchers working with Southern epistemologies across disparate contexts鈥攖he theme of this year鈥檚糖心传媒 conference provided us the space to tease out some common threads in our doctoral projects.

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